Young Gods
by FandomDream
Summary: Daughters of Hera, the bane of Zeus's existence. The Kron twins have been hunted for as long as they can remember. Connections are to be forged and shattered. Rated T for language and mild violence.
1. Prolouge

**Prologue**

It was May twenty-fourth, the year was 1997. But for the young girls, the days seemed to blur together. They had been on the run for a week. It wasn't like the seven-year-olds had _decided_ to run away from home, they hadn't had a choice.

Alexandria was looking around the corner into an alleyway. "It looks empty, come on." She whispered and went into the alley quickly, holding her sister's hand.

Anastasia let her sister pull her into the alley. "I just want to go home." she complained softly, knowing full well that they couldn't.

"It's been a week, Lexie, can't we find somewhere safe?" They couldn't. They'd never be able too. Her sister protected her, even though they protected each other just as much. Ana felt like her sister shielded her from some of the darkness of their life- but they'd never been innocent, not really. Not according to their step-father, anyways.

Subconsciously, Alex touched the scar on her chest. That was from their dear step-father. Their father had been a great man- but their step-father had had him killed in the same attacks that gave Alex her scar.

Looking at her sister sadly, she said, "We can't, and you know why. It never ends well. That…" she paused, knowing she'd make it worse if she called him what she wanted to, a monster. "That man makes sure of it." She muttered. She kept walking.

With that, Ana felt more miserable, even though she'd known what her sister was going to say. "Do you think there are… _others_ like us?" They were more mature than should be possible, and they had barely turned seven.

"Mo…." She cut herself off. " _She_ protects from _him_ , right?"

"I don't know or care if there are others like us. And even if _she_ does, that didn't help dad." Alexandria said bitterly.

She kept an eye out for any sudden movements or anything that even resembled a monster.

It saddened Ana that her sister sounded so bitter, though they both had reason to be so angry at the Gods. Their father had been a _great_ man. "We survived, though, right? We _are_ going to survive this, right, Lexie?"

Looking at her sister, Alex's eyes softened. "Of course we are. We have each other. We can protect each other and ourselves. And that's what matters." She said.

She pulled her sister into a hug. "It'll be OK, Ana. It will. I know it." She said softly.

Ana hugged her sister back, really wishing they weren't the children of who they were. Even going to a zoo was a nightmare. It seemed crazy, hearing the peacocks speak to then as if it were normal. Hence why they tried their best to avoid zoos. Wouldn't want others to think they were crazy.

They only know who's God-Spawn they were because their father had thought they'd be _much_ safer if they knew.

Both sisters stiffened when they heard a noise. They both hated confrontation, even with things that were literally out to kill them. Though Alex seemed to be more accepting of the idea of fighting when need be. Ana only wished that they could talk things out instead.

" _They're just kids,"_ came the voice of a female.

Alexandria glared and pulled out of the hug quickly, took Ana's hand quickly, and spun around to face the voice, keeping herself between the voice and her sister.

" _Whoa, kid, we aren't going to hurt you or your sister."_

Ana wanted to trust that whoever they where, they were human- just like them. Obviously they couldn't be God-Spawn, because they _had_ to be the only ones? There couldn't be any others.

Alexandria's glare deepened. "And why should we believe you?" She snapped angrily.

" _If we_ wanted _to hurt you, we would have already,"_ a male voice stated, slightly more tense than the female voice.

Alex was still on guard. She had to be, they have been tricked before. "Show yourselves." She demanded.

She couldn't stop her voice from shaking, no matter how much she tried. She was scared, though she didn't show it. She couldn't do that to her sister, she couldn't show fear. She had to be brave, for the both of them. It was so hard though, hiding her fear every day. Her emotions were starting to make her exhausted, and the monsters had started to realize that.

Her sister was nervous. What if it was another monster? Or more than one in this case, maybe. Unless it had multiple heads. Would each head sound different like this? She wanted to trust them, she really did. She wanted another person to trust. It seemed like such a rare occurrence.

Footsteps approached, and both sisters watched with caution as a boy and girl walked up. They looked ordinary, as far as either twin could tell. If anything, they were a bit cautious as well.

The others looked to each other, as if a silent discussion was being made between the two of them. After a moment, the girl first faced them. "My name is Thalia. And this is my friend, Luke." She said as she gestured to the boy as he turned his own head to face them as well.

At last, people who seemed willing to _talk_ to them. Ana almost jumped at the opportunity. "I am Anastasia. This is my twin, Alexandria." She said quickly, before feeling a bump in her side from her sister. Looking over with a questioning look, she was met with a raised eyebrow and doubt from her sister.

They should be able to try and trust someone, and Ana was worried for her sister and the lack of trust that was so obvious with her. Both had once been so trusting, and it hurt to see such change in her sister since the loss of their father. She understood, but it hurt nonetheless.

Her twin gave the others a cautious look once more. It felt like forever before anyone made another attempt at conversation. Finally the silence was broken by Luke. "We should get out of the alley, before any… unwanted visitors stop by." He muttered, mainly towards Thalia.

Before either twin could comment, there was a clap of thunder in the distance. "That sounds like a really good idea." Alex said suddenly. Though both Thalia and Luke were surprised by the sudden agreement from the twin who seemed more stubborn, they knew that now was not the time to question it.

With that, the four children fled together to what would soon be their shelter for the night. It was a long night, with both halves of the group not quick to trust. The night led to a week. The week led to more, and trust followed the time that the four had together. Monsters came and were defeated, quests were taken, and soon a supposedly an unbreakable bond was forged.

For once in what felt like forever, time seemed to fly by. Though some days were longer and tougher than others, they were a family. It seemed to be them against the world. Three years pass by before the unexpected happen. Another member of their little family joins the group.

It wasn't what any of them had imagined, but hadn't that been true when the twins had joined the group? The girl was named Annabeth Chase, a child with a fire in her soul, and fight in her heart. Though Anastasia was more concerned by such a fighter's attitude, her sister seemed to be more comfortable around her. Luke gave the girl a knife, with a promise that they would become a better family than her old one.

Even with the rocky start to their relationship, each of them bonded with her in their own time. It soon became clear that Luke had more of a fatherly figure in the group. On instinct, Anastasia had more of a motherly presence in the group. It had been a while before the twins had confessed their heritage to Luke and Thalia, but it had been a couple of years since they had.

After a couple of months of more monsters and adventure, the group came across a satyr named Grover. He came with news of a camp, one for people like them. Deciding to trust him, they go with him.

Some wrong turns later, and all besides Annabeth are captured by a Cyclops. With luck and skill, Annabeth saves them. But victory does not last. The monsters chasing them have caught up to them due to the delay. It was obvious that they would not be able to outrun them. As they approached the camp, Thalia insists that they go ahead.

As the crossed the border into camp, Anastasia looked back to see Thalia take her last breath, and watched as the girl that she had called a sister turned into a tree right before her eyes. It felt as though the world was spinning, crumbling even. Crying out with rage and heartbreak, it was almost as if the world _was_ crumbling. The sky seemed to darken.

But it was no imagination of the upset girl, the others could see it to. Alex seemed to realize it first, as she rushed over to her twin and tried her best to get her attention. The earth continued to crack and crumble underneath their feet. Finally, the grief stricken Ana looked to her sister. Eyes softening, the earth calmed and the sky returned to normal as she collapsed into Alex's arms, sobbing.

It was a heartbreaking and terrible situation for their whole little family, including the satyr that had been their guide. Each grieved in their own way, but none of them would forget this tragedy. As they cried, the symbol of their mother appeared above the crying twins, much to the shock of all but Luke and Annabeth. The symbol of Hera, Queen of Olympus.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The next five years consisted of training and moving forward with their lives. Everything seemed so different. Alexandria was different. More bitter, even more guarded. While Anastasia tried to keep to the present, hoping to remain trusting and as open to others as she could.

Though they looked the same, they acted different. They could pass for the same person, if Alex hadn't decided that shorter hair was more practical than the long hair they both had when they first came to camp.

Their eyes still sent shocks through the camp, though neither understood why. It was their eyes, and they'd had the same unique blend of silver and gold since their birth. Or so they assumed.

They didn't remember much prior to their father's murder. That hurt more than either cared to admit. The only pictures they had, gifts from their mother, were one's where their eye color had been the same as it was now.

The last picture they had was the morning of their birthday. All three of them were carefree and goofy.

They had maybe two pictures of them with their father. The one mentioned above and one when they were newborns.

They couldn't forget the day they came to camp, even if they wanted to. The symbol of Hera was the same color as their eyes and neither were sure if that was their mother randomly creating one or if they were more closely tied to her in more than just biology.

Besides the color, a single lily flower is the image associated with Hera.

Some would assume that it was a peacock, for that is her sacred animal. But assuming things got people in trouble and after the twins had arrived there was quiet conversations about whether Hera had more demigods in the past and they hadn't been discovered yet, or if the twins were the first mortal heroes of Hera.

It put Zeus in a terrible mood for the next several months.

If anyone asked, which people rarely did, they'd begrudgingly say they were from Montana.

All the traveling they had done with Luke and Thalia, they could claim they were from wherever. The truth was a much easier thing to recall than a single lie they could get caught it. One lie would lead to another and another until neither could keep track.

The truth was just easier.

With the teen years came more training, as well as more power. The twins had become to show a vast difference in their abilities. Ana had been able to show a talent for warping the reality around her, but only with a massive amount of concentration. Chiron had once theorized that this had been what had happened on the day that Thalia had died, due to such an emotional state.

Her twin, however, had small visions of the future. While it wasn't like the Oracle's power, it also wasn't exactly like visions that a normal demigod would possess. More often than not, it would happen during the day. As the twins aged, these powers became more noticeable.

With the years, Ana became more and more skilled with shooting arrows. Having taken to practicing with the children of Apollo, and others whom favored archery, it was easier for her to fight without being too close to the fight. After all, she never fully became comfortable with the concept of harming others. While she was able to do so for her safety and the safety of those she cared for, it was hard for the daughter of Hera to think of what that meant for the other side of the battle.

It was different for Alex, who was more willing to take down a foe. The protective nature of hers was more aligned with fight before talking. Skilled in the style of sword fighting, that was more of her talent.

As she defended herself while practicing such talents, her head suddenly began to feel as though a ton of pressure was piling onto her. Holding her hand up, her opponent thankfully took the hint. "Hey, you okay?" The child of Demeter asked.

Nodding, that was the last thing Alex did before dropping her sword the vision came. A young boy, with jet black hair and sea green eyes. And with that, the headache was gone. Blinking slightly, she looked up at her former opponent. "I'm fine." She said, perhaps a bit too bluntly. A typical Alexandria tone, one that most had gotten used to by now. Her twin was not one among the most.

If fact, her twin often said she should be more open to the campers that were part of their home. Alex strongly disagreed, since forming close bonds would only end in pain. Besides, the campers that were there year-round, like her, Ana, Annie, and Luke, were the ones she felt wouldn't die on her anytime soon.

Excusing herself from her dueling partner, she went to look for her sister. It didn't take long to find the other brunette. Anastasia was talking to Luke, her smile as bright as ever. The two had started a real relationship last year. It had been the happiest that Alex had seen her sister since they had been little, and that was the main reason that she approved. Both of them trusted him, and that was the other reason for approval.

Walking up to the both of them, she waved in a minor attempt to get their attention. "Sia, can we talk real quick?" She called over. Alex was one of the few people who actually called Anastasia that, as Anastasia preferred Ana and Stacy for nicknames. Alex understood, she would hate to be called Lexie by anyone besides Ana.

Her sister and Luke looked over. Ana looked at Luke briefly with a soft smile and then stood up from the bench she was sitting at to meet her sister half way. "Hey Lexie, what's up?" She asked, slightly concern on her face at noticing the look on her face.

As the twins talked, Luke watched from where he sat. He had an idea as to what they were discussing, not that he knew _exactly_ , but he figured that Alex had one of her premonitions and wanted to try and decipher it.

They almost always came true, even if it was in weird or unexpected ways. Alex had tried to warn him before his quest a few years back that something terrible was going to happen. It wasn't that her powers were secret or unknown, but he'd ignored her warning.

Luke had, stupidly, assume that it was due to the fact that none of them had left the camp since they had arrived. He knew that Alex rarely gave out warnings to people.

Nothing too terrible had happened on the quest; it was more to do with what happened after his botched attempt to retrieve a golden apple. Not that it mattered; one of them had been stolen centuries prior and if there's one thing Luke absolutely knew, from his own experiences, it was that reenacting quests could never lead anywhere good.

He knew that Ana and Alex still held a grudge towards Zeus for something the Sky God had done eight years ago. He was sure they still felt the same way towards their mother.

Of course, he knew where he stood in regards to the God's, and it sucked. The only reason he hadn't left this world of Gods behind him, assuming he could, was because of Ana, Alex, and Annie.

He was happy. As happy as he could be, with everything he had done and all that he was planning to do. Though he was bitter towards the Gods, he could never tell Ana. It had taken nearly a year after his quest to convince her that if they became a couple, it wouldn't unravel their little makeshift family.

They didn't have long, all demigods usually died young, he knew that him nearing nineteen was almost unheard of, and they shouldn't waste what time they had left. The coming war, which only the ignorant ignored the signs, would only cut their time in half - maybe more.

Part of him did wonder how Ana would react to all of this. Despite her bright personality, she was sensitive. He never would want to hurt her, he wanted to protect her. If anything happened to her… he wouldn't let anything happen, he kept telling himself that. Shielding her from the more… troublesome parts of all of this was how she would get through it all.

Smiling at her as she looked to him, her semi-permanent smile seemed to brighten even the darkest of souls. He would always wonder what made him so lucky. Lucky someone so bright could ever love him.

Ana walked over once more, Alex in tow. "What was that all about?" He asked. While Anastasia sat next to him, Alexandria sat on the other side of her twin.

"Lexie had a vision. It was of a boy." She said, a hint of a knowing smile on her lips. Instantly, he could hear the scoff come from the other side of his girlfriend.

Leaning forward, Alex shook her head slightly as she gazed at the both of them. "And my sister thinks it's a sign of my 'future love'. Unpopular opinion, I think it's a bad sign." She muttered, met with a groan from Ana.

As always, the twins consisted of pessimistic and an optimistic opinions. "Whether either of you are right or wrong, it is a sign of something. As always, us demigods should be prepared for anything." Luke responded to the both of them. This was met with two pairs of eyes showing mixed emotions.

Before any more words can be said, there was a loud roar from the border. "Seems like someone new is joining." Alex mumbled as they all got to their feet and ran for the hill just in time to stop and see a boy collapse in front of Chiron and Annie. "That's him." Alex gasped softly, causing her sister to glance at her with slight worry.

Anastasia walks up first, before her sister and boyfriend fully snap out of their previous shock. Looking at Grover, she raised a questioning eyebrow. "Who is he?" She asked softly, kneeling down beside the boy.

Grover watched the boy with worry. "He's a demigod, a powerful one. And my friend." He said hurriedly. The worry was quite understandable. Anastasia nodded sympathetically.

Percy Jackson was sent to the infirmary after that, unclaimed for now. It sounded as though he had been through a long day. Alex seemed eager to help Annabeth look out for him while he healed. She wanted answers, wanted to know what made him important enough to be part of one of her visions. Said visions were often more negative than positive.

As an unclaimed, it meant that he would be crammed in with the rest of cabin eleven. Luke was busy trying to help the others figure out how to find space for a new member of their little home.

With the rest of her little family having their hands full, Anastasia had decided to clean the cabin that she and her twin had to themselves. What had once been empty and cold had become as warm and welcoming as she could make it over the years of their stay.

Two beds had been the first items of furniture that had been added. It had taken weeks to make it perfect for both girls. And still Anastasia always wanted to make sure it looked perfect. Habit for the daughter of Hera.

It seemed like so long ago since the girls had lived in a proper room before camp. Back when their father was alive. A reminder of their loss came once a year, on their birthday, the day their father died. The day was fast approaching, only a few days away. A blunt reminder of their loss. All because of Zeus.

Ana sighed softly as the memory flashed in and out of her mind. Sitting on her bed, she looked around quietly. "Well daddy, another year is passing by." She stated softly. In all of her hopes, her biggest one was that he would be proud.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The next few days were a blur for the twins. Between making sure Percy was alright and getting him settled into cabin eleven, the day of their worst nightmare arrived. Ana wasn't even sure how their fifteenth birthday, and the eight year anniversary of their father's death, had snuck up on them. It was one of the few times Ana was on edge and temperamental.

It was probably a good thing everyone knew to not come bother them in their cabin. Even Luke, whom she loved seeing and being with, wasn't someone she wanted to see. Hell, even her sister was a barely tolerated presence and it had been an event they'd both witnessed - and one they would never forget.

It seemed like clockwork. Even if they weren't paying attention to the date, they somehow knew it was their birthday.

 _Happy birthday. For a present, I'm killing your father and I'm going to try to kill both you and your twin._

For her, it was a day when she wanted to raise both of her middle fingers to the sky, and curse Zeus until his ears bleed with the profanity that she used.

She wasn't one to make such bold gestures or use such foul language. She was always getting after the other campers for such things.

Today was a day where she barely had enough sense to not try and destroy the camp. If such a thing was possible; and it probably was, she could probably do something and the camp would just _vanish_.

Anastasia really didn't want that. It might have been somewhere she really didn't want to be, but it was as close of a home as she and Alex were probably going to get.

But as the twins mourned, the world moved forward.

Luke knew it was going to be a bad day for both of them, more for Ana than Alex. He desperately wished there was a way for him to take away her pain. But there wasn't, and as much as it pained him to admit, he knew she needed to get her anger off her chest. Hopefully without pissing off Zeus. She never did, but that didn't mean this year wouldn't be different from last year, or all the years prior.

He wasn't sure why his nerves were on end this year. Perhaps it had something to do with them dating. It didn't make sense to him why that would make any difference. The days after were always tense for Ana, even if she'd gotten most of her aggression out.

Luke glanced over at the cabin where Alex and Ana were, flinching as the land surrounding it shifted. It really shouldn't surprise him that Ana was making changes in her uncontrollable anger, but this year seemed especially bad. It wasn't like on the run, where they stopped talking and just held onto each other for the whole day and could barely be convinced that they needed to _move_ or else they could all be killed.

Ever since they'd gotten to camp and Ana had somehow… unlocked her power of reality manipulation, each year things seemed to get worse. It didn't help that she acted like everyone's mother. Even when she wanted to be a regular teenager, she couldn't. If he could get her out of the camp, away from the people whom had come to depend on her to watch out for them, the first thing he would make sure of was that she _knew_ she didn't have to be anyone's mother if she didn't want to.

That she could be the teenager she should be able to be if she so chooses. Maybe being a kid - even though none of them had ever really had a childhood - would do her some good.

He would make sure that she _knew_ that showing, what she perceived as, _negative emotions_ wouldn't be a bad thing. For anyone. And if all she wanted to do was show how pissed off and hurt she was for weeks on end, he wouldn't say anything because she had _earned_ the right to be angry and violent.

They all had.

He had to fight against the instinct to go comfort his girlfriend, to take her away from camp that very moment. She was in pain and he didn't like that one bit.

In another part of camp, Annabeth was showing Percy around. Though he'd been well enough to leave the infirmary, they hadn't had a chance to show him around. Today of all days was probably the worst for a tour.

Or, maybe it was the best. While she didn't feel the need to explain who each cabin belonged to, nobody would be doing any bullying today. Nobody really wanted to deal with a certain pissed off daughter of Hera. They'd made the mistake once.

Once. And that was all it took for everyone to come to a silent, mutual agreement, that on May 17th of each year whatever bullying was happening would … pause for the day.

Annabeth watched as Percy glanced at where all the commotion was.

"What's happening over there?" The new resident of Camp Half-Blood mumbled to Annabeth, eying the shifting landscape over by Hera's cabin.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "That would be Anastasia." And with that said, he earned another eye roll with his shocked expression. "Today is… it's a very hard day for both Alexandria and Anastasia."

She wasn't going to say anymore on the subject. If he was dumb enough to ask either one in the coming days, then it was his own funeral. She actually hoped he _was_ dumb enough to ask. Then everyone could get a show of both twins attacking the newcomer.

Back in cabin two, Alex was surprised that nothing had been broken… yet. She could see that it wasn't just the date that was upsetting her sister but she couldn't figure quite put a figure on what else it could be. She privately wondered if the something else was a certain son of Hermes.

It felt like their roles were reversed, while Alex was more prone to screaming in anger, Ana was always the calm one. It came as a shock every year, and it probably shouldn't. Alex knew trying to calm her twin right now would most likely end in violence.

She knew even attempting to talk with her right now was not a good idea.

While Ana felt uncontrollable anger, Alex just felt numb. The scar she'd gotten when she was seven had barely started to fade - though it'd been healed for years. Though she could forget about it for most of the year, something about their birthday brought back all the memories she's tried so hard to forget.

It didn't help that Ana refused to forgive their step-father. Even Alex thought it was a little hypocritical of Ana to harbor such resentment and anger for the year when she constantly pushed others to not hold on to their anger. At least Alex never hid how she felt about their… _situation_.

As the day passed by, it seemed that the next day had not come soon enough. With it a fresh feeling in camp, and with each day after that led to more weight off of everyone. By the end of the month, Anastasia and Alexandria were back to their day to day lives.

June was a new month, and even its days were passing by. The new member of camp was getting used to things, Ana was quick to get to know him. It was a rocky start. Percy wasn't quick to get to know the girl who had changing things around without actually being present. But with her personality, it didn't take too long for them to get to know one another.

Luke seemed to be bonding with Percy as well, which wasn't too surprising to his girlfriend. It was a welcome occurrence.

The day Percy was claimed, the reveal was a shock to everyone. A shock that rivaled the one of the claiming of the twins. Well, perhaps it was less of a shock than their claiming. After all, they were the daughters of _Hera_.

However, the night brings danger. A hellhound loose in camp attacks the son of Poseidon. More shock is felt throughout the camp. It unsettles Ana to think that Annabeth will be heading out with Percy on this quest. Constantly fussing over the blonde as she prepared, she finally earned an annoyed look.

"I'll be fine, you know that Stacey. It's not like demigods have never gone on quests before." Annabeth stated, her eyes slightly softening towards the end. She understood, they were family. Ana just so happened to be the mothering sort of said family.

With a sigh, Ana gave a slight nod. "I know. But… some of us don't make it back. We… we almost lost Luke. I can't stand the fact of losing any of you." She stated softly, worry still in her eyes.

Annabeth flinched at that, and let out a sigh of her own. "But he's fine. I'll be fine too. You know me. It's seaweed brain you should be worried about." She commented, patting Ana's shoulder gently.

Huffing slightly, Ana shook her head. "I don't need another person to worry about, thank you." She mumbled. Saying something under her breath that sounded a lot like ' _I've already tried fretting over Percy'_.

Earning a scoff, it was clear that Annie heard that. Groaning, Ana shook her head again. "I'm gonna go vent to Luke, as it seems that no one needs me here." She mumbled.

Before she could move, arms circled her quickly. Annabeth sighed softly. "I'm always going to need you." She said gently. Anastasia hugged back, patting Annabeth's head comfortingly.

After a moment, both girls let go. "Be safe, or I'll track you three down to yell at you." Ana stated bluntly. Part of Annabeth worried about how true the statement was.

With that, Ana was off to see Luke. Perhaps he had comforting words. Even if such things were normally her specialty, that didn't mean that she didn't need such words directed towards her at times.

Just in time to see Luke give Percy some winged shoes, Ana smiles as she walks up to Luke. "Goodbye present? Didn't know that it was expected." She commented playfully. Though others didn't seem to notice, she tilted her head at spotting a flash in Luke's eyes at her approach. Something wasn't right, but she couldn't tell just what it was.

While deciding that such things, she turned back to Percy with a warm smile. "Don't do anything stupid." She commented, but in a warm and motherly tone. Still, it was a blunt statement. One that hinted at how much she meant it.

Having to watch the three head off, Ana could just feel that something wasn't quite right. Trying to tell herself that it was simply nerves, she took a deep breath and looked at Luke.

"What have you done?" She asked in a quiet, slightly accusatory, tone. "You know Percy can't use those shoes you gave him. Are you trying to get him killed?"

She might not have known Percy very well, but Annie seemed to have latched onto the son of Poseidon - and the same could be said about Percy.

It meant, to her at least, that weather she wanted another person to constantly worry about or not, she'd gotten one. If anyone, and she meant _anyone_ , tried to harm Percy and it ended up hurting Annie, Ana wouldn't think twice about seriously torturing - and slowly killing - the fool who dared harm her family.

With one look, he knew she meant it. It was then that he realized that something had to be done. He had to get her out of camp… without making it obvious, of course. He likely only had a matter of days before they heard anything. Days until something got back that might make her grow suspicious. Others might not see it, but she would if he wasn't careful.

Sighing, he looked as if he had just messed up big time. "You're right, I wasn't thinking of that. He's a smart kid though, I'm sure he'll figure it out." He said, putting on his best sheepish smile.

It was only due to pure luck for him that she believed him, mainly due to the fact that she was trying to suppress her bad feelings with a dismissal of it all being due to nerves. "Just… think more before doing something." She mumbled softly.

A relieved smile showed on his face, and he kissed her head as he wrapped an arm around her. "I will." He stated. It was true, he was going to think more before doing anything around her, for both of their sakes.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The remainder of the day was spent with Alex being unable to shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong during the next few days. She was worried about Annie and the quest, but that wasn't what was bothering her. If her instincts were right, Annie would be fine. It was more that something was nagging at her that something was going to go wrong _at camp_.

The fact that she was getting an… _off_ vibe from Luke that she didn't understand didn't help matters any. If anything, it made her worried and stressed for her sister. Whatever was going to happen, it couldn't be healthy for Ana.

She glanced over at her sleeping sister and sighed. She wasn't going to get to sleep anytime soon.

Reluctantly, she crawled out of bed and stretched. Some other campers stayed up late and started early, and she didn't think it was a good idea. But here she was, joining them in their late night adventures.

Though she was sure it was late, even to the night owls standards.

They'd gone to bed around ten, and it had to have been at least six hours since. Maybe more. At least she could sleep in if she wanted, it wasn't like there was anything she was expected to do before noon.

She figured a short walk would relax her a little, just enough for her to get some rest. As she walked out, she gently closed the door. No use making it so neither could sleep.

Alex wasn't sure where she was going to go, but she figured that was probably a good thing. If she didn't know where she was going, then she wouldn't know if she took a wrong turn, and she might end up right where she needed to be - or she'd end up where she started.

What she didn't expect on her walk was to over hear some of the other campers, Luke included, discussing on a coming war and their game plan.

As she eavesdropped (something Ana would probably scold Alex for later) she came to the conclusion that it was Luke was the ringleader of this group of… traitors. Because they weren't whispering about how they were going to _defend_ the Gods, they were discussing how they were going to _defeat_ them.

"...someone needs to _hint_ at the coming battle." Luke finally decided. "And then get the hell out of camp. We'll meet up in a few weeks."

"We still need more demigods for our armies." Someone replied.

"I'm sure many of my cabin will join - the unclaimed ones who have been here for a few years, at least. Probably some of the claimed ones, too."

Alex felt uncomfortable listening in, but she couldn't _not_ listen. What if she left and they said something she needed to know? If she left now, then she couldn't tell Chiron what she'd heard and make such accusations without more _proof_.

"We need to find a way to get Ana out of camp." Luke cut in on whatever someone was saying. "Besides the fact that she's my girlfriend, she's powerful. We could use her."

"What about Alex?"

Luke shook his head. "We can only get one to leave. Ana is far more powerful than Alex. If she's on our side… well, Annabeth and Alex might join out of loyalty. Maybe more."

"We could kill her."

His eyes flashed and he shook his head again. "We won't be killing either daughter. We don't want their mother against us just yet."

Honestly, concrete proof or not, Alex knew she had to leave from where she hid. Taking soft steps away from where she'd been, she finally felt like she could believe again.

Even if she couldn't tell Chiron, she could still tell her sister. But… maybe she would wait a few days and try to catch Luke in a traitorous act. Ana couldn't deny it then.

It was scripted. Well, most of it was. Luke knew that Alex had been spying and had decided against telling the others. He knew when he brought up Ana, one of the first things someone would suggest would be to kill Alex. He didn't want that, but he wasn't dumb enough to expect every member of his makeshift family to come out of this alive.

He knew she wouldn't tell on them, knew she'd wait a few days before even breaching the topic with Ana. And that was exactly what he wanted for now. He didn't want them to trust each other. Nearly a year of planting distrust in both of them, and it was just starting to show.

Ana hadn't really been asleep, but hadn't wanted to move around. Even if she didn't get much sleep, at least she'd be ready when sleep did claim her. She figured Alex actually was asleep until she heard the door shut.

She turned in her bed and debated getting up to follow wherever her twin was going but ultimately decided against it. Ana didn't need to mother her twin. Still, worry nagged at her until she heard the door open again and her twin walked through.

"Have a nice stroll?" Ana asked as she sat up.

Alex looked surprised at her twin. "Yes." It was a short, tense, answer.

Ana narrowed her eyes. "Are you meeting someone?"

Even more surprise. "No! Of course not. I just couldn't sleep."

It seemed to be a night where neither could sleep. Ana wondered if her sister was lying to her. Was Alex dating someone and didn't want anyone else to know? Ana could keep secrets just fine. Alex should know that… unless Alex _didn't trust her_. The thought hurt more than Ana would've thought. They used to tell eachother everything.

Maybe Luke was right and Alex was hiding a bigger secret than just having a boyfriend (or girlfriend, but Ana didn't think Alex swung that way).

Ana let out a sigh. "Fine. Don't tell me then." she rolled back over and tried to calm her racing mind and get some sleep.

She heard Alex do the same.

The next few days continued pretty much the same as the previous ones. The only difference was Alex trying to catch Luke in the act of betraying them. Thankfully, Ana seemed to be indifferent to Alex's movements.

The third day, a change occurred. Alex hated this kind of change. It led to nowhere good. Somehow the camp had learned about the feud between Poseidon and Zeus. How Zeus had accused Percy of stealing the Master Bolt and that was the real reason he, Annabeth, and Grover had gone on the quest.

It was chaos. Every cabin was preparing for war, taking one or the other God's side.

Alex just needed to wait until she could talk with Ana in private before telling her what she knew. She should've told her _days_ ago, but hadn't because she didn't think Ana would believe her. She still thought that, but with everything that was going on she figured Ana needed to know about Luke and what he was doing.

Making up her mind, she decided to let her twin know what she'd discovered that night, when everyone should've been in bed and trying their hardest to fall asleep.

"Why are you just telling me, if you've known since the night Annabeth left on her quest?" Ana had to reign her voice in, so that she wasn't shouting.

While it hadn't been many days since the youngest in their little family had left, it had been more than enough time for her sister, her _twin_ sister, to inform her of what she'd discovered.

Unless Alex didn't trust her. The thought made her sick to her stomach. Why wouldn't her own flesh and blood not trust her?

Did _she_ trust her twin? Absolutely. She would never hide things from Alex.

… would she? Oh, it was all to confusing for her.

Alex could see the hurt and pain in her twin's eyes. She was kicking herself for sitting on this for a few days. This was something she should've told Sia, even if there was no concrete proof (besides Alex's words). So why hadn't she? Had she wanted to keep her sister happy for a while longer? Keep their family together, when she could see it had been falling apart for five years?

Either choice seemed worthless at this point. But what was it their father had always said? Hindsight is 20-20? She was sure that was the phrase, but she wasn't completely certain.

"I didn't think… I thought I needed more proof." She flinched at the words. That sounded like she didn't think her sister would believe her. It sounded just as bad, if not worse, than if she'd just said she didn't trust what Ana's response would be.

"I would have believed you." Ana replied in a strained voice. "Luke was acting… weird. But everything's all better now."

confused as to what her sister meant.

"He's doing this for us, Alex." Ana whispered. "He's doing it so we don't have to live under _his_ rule."

They never spoke his name. They never said Zeus. She flinched when Ana reached forward and tightly grasped her hands.

"We'll have our revenge, Alex, we'll finally be able to avenge our father."

Alexandra didn't quite grasp what Anastasia was saying. It sounded like a mad woman talking. It sounded like someone… completely smitten with their lover that they couldn't see what was actually going on.

"Do you hear yourself, Sia?" She asked softly. "You're talking as if you believe what Luke's telling you." She said, pulling her hand out of her sister's grasp. "Luke hasn't been the same. He's been changing since his quest. He isn't the Luke we met when we were seven." It sounded like she was trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to reason with Sia.

She had to make her sister understand. A bunch of children couldn't change the world. They couldn't make a difference in the lives of immortals. The God's could make _their_ lives worse.

Alex flinched at the sad look her twin gave her.

But then Ana's sadness turned to anger. "You hypocrite. The one that always speaks negatively of _them_. You're… you're a traitor to your own kind." She snapped before marching out of their cabin.


End file.
